Random Streaks XXIII

The world was a better place when we had ...more needs and fewer wants ...bigger dreams and simpler realities ...more learning and lesser education ...a small house but a large home ...smaller salaries but fewer expenses ...smaller hospitals but better health ...lesser food but good food ...lesser living time but more loving minutes ...lesser technology but more communication ...lesser gadgets but more comforts ...narrow roads but broader minds. So, have we really made the world a better place today?

A significant reason for the greatest disasters as well as discoveries in the history of mankind is man trying to improve something that was already working fine.

Woman is the life force of the world. She can make a man feel warm with her serenity, hot with her sensuality and cold with her severity. She can make him aspire to climb new heights or despair to lose many fights. She can be the light in his darkness or the wind on his lone candle. She can be the silver lining in his dark cloud, or the reason for the gray strands in his dark mane. She can be the reason of birth, preservation and destruction, all within the same lifetime. So, Man, know which woman to respect, which one to protect, which one to beware, and which one to die for.

Man without bonding of his own family is reduced to his primal form of survival, where survival and mere existence become synonymous.

A person who smiles at others and laughs at himself/herself is always at peace with themselves and the world.

The journey of life is like crossing a road. You can cross it like a dog or like a cat. Ever seen a cat quickly scoot across the road, no matter whether the road is busy or empty? But for the cat, it just wants to quickly get across and takes a chance by running across quickly. You can do the same if you are willing to take that chance, remembering well that you do not have nine lives like the cat does. On the other hand, seen a dog cross the road? It either stands calmly looking at either side and then crosses carefully, or it keeps running along one side of the road until it find a gap in the traffic to cross over to the other side. You can learn something from the dog. Just because you do not have an opening in the traffic does not mean you have to stand in the same place. You can keep moving forward and then cross over. Or you can watch and wait for the right moment. Does not matter whether you are a dog or a cat. The objective is to just get across the road in one piece.

The word 'No', just two alphabets long, can still be the most positive powerful words in your life to take you to success. All you have to do is: 

1. Never accept No for an answer, from yourself or from anyone else. 
2. Learn to say No when you have to. These two principles alone will pave the way for your success in anything you do.

The more 'hardy' your dedication and struggles in your life are, the more 'laurels' you will achieve!

To know where you are, you need to know where you have been. And to know where you have to be, you need to know where you are. The past, present and future are but states of our own consciousness as we travel through time. In reality, there is just a starting point and an ending point, and everything else in between is just a journey that we call Life. Life is a straight line. You can never live it to the fullest by going around in circles.

Mother is a reincarnation

Mom is the reincarnation of God, the one who puts you to a peaceful sleep and wakes you up to your life. She is a mirror because she cries when you cry and laughs when you laugh. She is like Mother Earth because she supports you even if you stamp on her. She is like the clouds in the sky that only rain blessings on you even if you don't look up to her. She may not be educated but she still is your first teacher and teaches you to live life. She is like a tree for she will burn to give you warmth and protection. Love of a mother to her child is the most primary and powerful emotion because, regardless of the number of senses, all living beings emote this feeling. Every mom undergoes a near-death experience when delivering her child. She was ready to face death to give you the world. Respect that woman.

Random Streaks XXII

Everything you come by in your life is borrowed; given to you for a short period of time. The words you speak are from a language someone else created long time ago. The pictures you draw are creations by God. The music you hear comes from the vibrations of nature. As you walk through life, you keep shedding your clothes. The cloth of ignorance, arrogance, ego, anger, jealousy, materialism. When your time comes to leave, you leave naked with nothing but your soul, because the last cloth you shed is your body. Knowing the above is what differentiates the wise from the fool. So let go of your arrogance. Everyone, rich or poor, will still have a last breath.

These days there are a lot of similarities between our lifestyle and hairstyle. Once you set the hairstyle in the morning, if we try to change to a different hairstyle it becomes totally messy. We can only comb in the same style again. Same way in life we easily lose flexibility and become rigid to the unpredictability of life. This is probably why Buddhist monks go bald; to show their freedom from rigidity, compulsions and desire.

The world is unfair and throws dirt at you. You can either get up and clean it, or shut up like you've not seen it.

Sugar and Salt...they teach us a lot in life. From a distance, they more or less look the same. But they are worlds apart in their appeal and meaning. You can keep having sugar thinking that you like it. But at one point of time, you get sick of it. And when you are really hungry, you don't care for sugar. All you need is a spicy meal and you need salt for that. Same way, your work life is like sugar and your personal life (your ambitions, desires, family, love, emotions, and anything that strikes a chord in you) is like salt. From a distance, we think both are the same and comfortably ignore the salty part. But remember, end of the day, you still need the salt to make your life spicy.

These days, weekends are but a zip file of all the things we want to do. All the desires, interests, passion, hobbies, by whatever name it may be called. You unzip the weekend and you realize you have so much to do and so little time. You live the life of a workaholic zombie on the weekdays and suddenly realize you have a life, a personal life, only on the weekends. And then you become the undead again on Sunday night.

The problem with the world today is that everyone takes their own sweet time to mess up something but want the mess to be cleared out immediately once it starts bothering them

English is in binary too!

I have already written about life being represented in binary i.e. 0s and 1s where each one is the complement of the other. I realize the English language is in binary too. 

If you consider a doubtful question representing a 0 and an affirmative answer representing a 1, then yes, English is in binary too as below. 

You simply create a 0 (a question) or a 1 (the answer) by shifting position of the same letters. 

Can I? is a 0; I can. is a 1 

Is it possible? is a 0; It is possible. is a 1 

Am I responsible? is a 0; I am responsible is a 1. 

You know what, life is simple, but we make it complicated by trying to understand it the other way around. By trying to see the higher truth in everything we do, thus missing the simple realities lying right in front of us. And if everything in life has a dual nature, where one represents the other and if this world itself is a dual image, then what are we reflecting? that is the bigger question of science.

How to walk like you want to exercise?

How to walk like you want to exercise? 

Most people think they are actually walking for exercise while they actually stroll like they are in a park. Only a brisk walking really helps in activating many of the organs such as the pancreas which actually helps with the secretion of insulin and activates the production of various enzymes in the body. When you are walking and you don't have a partner and you are not listening to music, then how do you motivate yourself to walk effectively? This is what I do.. When walking, I identify a person walking in front of me, say about 20-30 feet away. I then identify a landmark (say a lamppost) ahead of that person, say at a distance of 50-60 feet away. Then I pick up my speed to try and cross that person before he/she reaches that landmark. This gives me a sense of competition and accomplishment, all the while working my leg and cardiac muscles, while improving my blood circulation. This gives you a feel good factor as well. Try it out the next time you really want to walk fast. Tip: To add to the motivation, you can also associate the landmark with something important to you, maybe some problem in life you want to overcome. So when you actually cross the landmark before the person does, you actually feel psychologically stronger to conquer that landmark.

Random Streaks XXI

The fast machine needs a faster rider. If not, one will waste the other. The power is not in the tool but in the mind that wields it.

Some people worry too much that they always see the glass half empty. Some people take pride that they always see the glass half full. As for me, I am just glad I have a glass. I will fill it with any damn thing I want and when I want.

Falling in love is like jumping out of an aeroplane with your parachute on. The parachute may or may not open. But that does not mean you can't enjoy the view while you are up there, floating in the air and, alive.

What would be a cannibalistic thought? - to make a resolution not to spend much time in Facebook and put up that as the status in Facebook. ;-) Be good, do good, family comes first, work sincerely, manage time, live your passions, cry and laugh from the heart, shake hands warmly, dream on - these are all the resolutions that really matter in life.

Roadblocks suscitate you in life; deadlocks suffocate you. A life without challenges is not lived at all. The fun is actually in avoiding the deadlocks by using your grey matter.

Most often, the limitations that stop you from accomplishing something are the ones you impose on yourself out of the fear that you know it. Let go of the 'fear to let go'.

When you die nobody will accompany you. You will have no body left. But that is no reason for you to be a nobody when you die.

No matter how big the circle of their life is, some people will still stand at the centre, of their own fears and ignorance. Conquer your fear, and you will conquer your feat.

Random Streaks XX

By following people greater than you, you become wise. By showing compassion to people less fortunate than you, you become noble. By respecting people equal to you, you become a smart gentleman. By listening to people who don't love and care about you, you become them.

Love does not start between two people like a bulb switching on. It rather starts like an early morning sun's rays that eventually brightens the day as it progresses. You never know where and when it started, but just that you are already bathed in its light.

All things in this world can be seen as either a problem or a solution... If darkness is a problem, then light is the solution. If hunger is a problem, then food is the solution. If a lie is the problem, then speaking the truth is the solution. If fear is the problem, then finding your courage is the solution. If the Devil is the problem, then God is the solution. Without the problem, the solution ceases to exist. Respect your problem, and your solution will follow.

If one solution should fix all problems, then there should be only one problem. 

If there should be only one problem, then there should be only one goal. 

If there should be only one goal, then there should be only one focus. 

If there should be only one focus, then there should be only one thought. 

If there should be only one thought, then there should be only one mind. 

If there should be only one mind, then there should be only one desire. 

If there should be only one desire, then there should be only one principle.

 If there should be only one principle, then there should be only one belief. 

If there should be only one belief, then there should be only one faith. 

f there should be only one faith, then there should be only one God. 

But you see, because humans can never come to agreement on one God, it is easily seen that they are responsible for their own mess in this world. Yet, in the most brazen manner, they blame God!

Two eyes (I's) to make one view (we-iew)

If your attitude in life is No, then the good things in life, you will never Know. 

If your arrogance does not let you Pray, then your ignorance will make you the Prey. 

If you are fickle and fall into Vice, you will never get up to become Wise. 

If you are in Assent to evil, then you will never be in Ascent towards God. 

Even if one Eye became egoistic and told you, "It is I that makes you see", then you will have only half the view. 

It takes two eyes (I's) to make one view (we-iew)

The Cockroach

Everyone hates the cockroach. Everyone wants to kill a cockroach the moment they see one. It's life is in the gutter, in darkness. And if it's body is upturned then it cannot turn around again by itself. Yet it is one of the longest thriving species of living beings on earth. It is because the cockroach has learnt to adapt itself to the harshness of the world through evolution which also includes developing a thick exoskeleton that protects it. Same way, humans have to develop a toughness around them that will help them face any situation in life instead of succumbing to it. See, even a cockroach can teach us a lesson. Let us respect all creations of God, for He teaches us the way of life through them.

Who wants to be the 'other' person?

All unhappiness and disappointments in life begin with each person wanting to be the 'other' person.

The illiterate man wants to be educated, but the educated man wants to be in ignorant bliss. 

The poor man wants to be rich, but the rich man wants a simple, contended life. 

The single man wants a family, but the family man wants to be single and free of burdens. 

The child wants to grow up, and the grown up want to be the childish self again. 

Everyone wants to be the other man, thus not realizing the beauty in being what they are, at any given point of time in life. Always know where you stand, and stand by what you are, in the present and that will keep you happy and rooted to reality, and will give you a progression in life. 

Remember, there is only one You in this world and that makes you unique.

Random Streaks XIX

Every decision you make will turn out to be right for you only if you stand by it long enough.

There are many points of time in life when you are driven by the deepest desire to really go after what you want in life, what you aspire to do with your time in hand. When you waste those moments, such points of time keeping reducing in life to the point of making it pointless.

If you believe that your decisions drive your destiny, then there is no need to worry about anything in life. If you believe that your destiny drives your decisions, then there is no use worrying about things in life. So why worry at all?

It is so much easier for you to forgive yourself when your own decisions fail than that of others that you followed. Live your life, make your path, find your peace and enjoy the fruit of freedom.

In life, anger, hate, jealousy, greed will all decide how you will die. But only love will define how you will live.

In hate, the strong becomes weak. In anger, the wise becomes a fool. In lust, saint becomes a sinner. But love is the only feeling that makes a weak man strong, a foolish man wise, and a sinner into a saint. And other way around also. Never underestimate the power of love.

Trying to find out when two people fell in love is like trying to find the exact time when a baby was formed in the mother's womb. It is so divine that we cannot understand it. Love is the purest form of emotion that cannot be defined by time, but can only be set free by it.

How soon you decide on something is not as important as how much conviction you have in standing by your decision, lifelong. According to the Bible, God took only 7 days to create this world. And the Kurukshethra war was fought and over with in just 18 days. Big things in life are not defined by the time it took to accomplish it but by the bigger commitment you make towards it in your mind and heart, and in how much you believe in yourself.

Random Streaks XVIII

Even an eagle that flies at a height of 10,000 feet in the sky will have to rest its feet on the ground when it is tired. Likewise, no one in life is always a success or a failure, is always happy or always sad. Therefore learn to be humble by remembering the lessons from your past, and be hopeful for the promises held by your future. Always be affectionate to your parents, caring to your siblings, loving to your spouse, sincere to your friends, honest to your work and zealous in your life. That is all there is to life! The rest all is just small change, don't sweat it.

When a person wants to succeed in life, he/she aims to go higher and higher, thus always carrying the fear of falling down from that height. This height the person has gained represents luxury, ego and authority that they don't want to lose when they fall. Instead he/she should aim to go far in life while maintaining the same height always. This far distance they travel represents their accomplishments, learning and knowledge. Thus, at whatever stage they may happen to have a setback and fall, they will still fall from the same height always.

Everyone's life is like a book. Some are comics; makes others happy, makes them laugh. Some are like the novels, interesting and full of mystery. Some are like the holy books, always there to go to when sad, but otherwise not the most popular or interesting person to mingle with. Some are like biographies; always have some thing to share that inspires others. Some are like the great epics; their lives will be spoken about long after they are gone. It does not matter what book you are, as long as you have one hell of a good story to tell.

A circle, no matter how big it is, will always have 360 degrees. Not one degree more or less. The area of each degree may increase but not the number of degrees itself. Same way, man can increase his boundaries of knowledge, but the count of his desires should remain in check.

Many people think that money is the prize they earn for giving more importance to their professional life than their personal. But it is actually the price they pay in their ignorant bliss.

Everyone you come across in life are of some help to you, for they teach you one of the two things always - how to live and how not to live. The quality of your life will depend on what you are able to learn.

Clock and Compass

Both the compass and the clock are similar in shape and have two hands. Yet they teach us different lessons by the purpose they serve. The hands of the compass that always point to the north tells us that we need to have one direction and focus in life. The hands of the clock that keep going round and round tells us that we need to work consistently towards that focus while remaining within our ethical boundaries. The small hand that moves slowly indicate that our thinking and decision making have to be deliberate, cautious and clever. The longer hand that moves faster indicates that our actions needs to be quick and precise once the decision has been made on any matter in life.

Random Streaks XVII

The reason many people' lives are not contented and fulfilling, as much as they want it to be, is because they work towards their commitments (financial and sentimental) and not towards their passions. Throughout the history of mankind, all advancements in all fields were made by people who worked towards their passions.

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Everything in your life is measured. You are born with a specific number bones and organs in your body. Your heart is built to pump in only a specified volume of blood in your lifetime. Lungs will process only so many breaths of air all your life. Similarly, the count of things that you will get in life is also fixed. If you are destined to receive only 100 things altogether in life, then when you receive something, you will lose another to keep the count of 100. This upper limit of the count of things that you may have in life depends on your karma. By your own actions, you either draw a small circle around you or a bigger one within which you can play in your life. Everything is connected because everything is finite and measurable. So choose wisely what you want and what you are willing to compromise for it.

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Most of the managers today are escalators, intent on escalating every small mistake of the employee, instead of being elevators and lifting the employee up by correcting their mistakes and motivating them.

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The reason many projects and teams fail is because companies or its management turn its people, process and principles into subordinates of time, thus focusing only on what is urgent and not what is important. Focus should not be in making money urgently but in building the ever important relationship with the team and clients over your principles and processes, even if it takes more time. This alone will have a long standing benefit over time.

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Motherhood is not a position but a feeling. Mother introduces the child to its father. The father showers his love and affection to his child. At that time, he too exhibits motherhood. Motherhood is the affection that forms an umbrella of protection over the child, even ready to sacrifice itself in the process. Thus, father and mother are just two divine beings, the image of God, through whom God showers the affection of motherhood on us. So, love your parents truly and do everything for them, and you will not even have to say one word of prayer to God your whole life.

Times gone by

In the times of our parents and grandparents, money was hard to come by. Every paise mattered. Building a house and marrying a girl off were a lifetime achievement. Having a car, a two-wheeler, a TV, and so on were all a luxury. Mobile phones were non-existent. The only net that people knew were the ones tied around the bed to protect oneself from the mosquito. Pizza was assumed to be the leaning tower in Italy. Woodlands were the outskirts of the city where no one ventured into in the night. People atleast multi-tasked with the hand fan made of leaf in one hand, and a book in another with a dim yellow bulb above their head. Almost everything was reused, especially rice cooked the previous night. They knew nothing about the advancements of technology we enjoy today. They knew nothing, except how to be happy, naturally. They were not sensitive about the sadness that came in the way of their happiness. They were grateful for the happiness that came into their tough life. They found time for their gods, family, friends, and for themselves. They did not buy a credit card and look into their budget every month for money to pay it off. They instead put lots of love into postcards that they sent to their loved ones. They waited for all good things in life, and relished it when they got it. And if they did not get it, they still lived a contended life knowing they gave it a try. They respected each other for they really were, not for what they expected each other to be. When they had their cups empty, they had a burning desire to fill it. Now that the cup is full, we let it go cold and instead wander in search of another cup to fill. The creative minds ran wild due to lack of fear to try out anything and everything in life. Their life let them take a break and breathe. And they lived and built this planet. We are now continue inhaling that breath while it lasts. Find a life.

World of Energy

We live in a world where we see energy all around us, but in all the wrong contexts. Our food is turning into more of chemical energy. Our tolerance and temper have become thermal. Our dreams have become kinetic (it will work only if it connects with our luck and reality) Our wealth is only potential (the actual assets are instead tied up with loans and mortgages) Our relationships are electric (it can light up our life, but can also give a rude shock) Our future will end up in electro-chemical (where we will be racing for the next fuel-cell to facilitate our life, after exhausting all fossil fuels) The promises made to us is just a lot of sound energy while we believe them, thinking they would provide us light Families only become more nuclear, And brains of the generations to come will become atomic in size. So that's all the energies for you in today's world.

Random Streaks XVI

Three lines of advice parents should give their children that will be sufficient for their whole life - 
1. Use time wisely 
2. Use money wisely 
3. Use the above only for good

When you grow a plant in a small pot, the plant will grow only as much as its roots can grow and gather nutrients. Shift the same plant to the ground and the plant achieves a bigger growth. Same way, when our brain is confined by a smaller mind, we fail to grow emotionally and intellectually. Broaden your mind to widen the boundaries of knowledge that your brain can acquire.

Whichever way I see it, I shall be an example to everyone, whatever their perception of me may be. I will either be an example of how a person should be, or how a person should not be. But what really matters is, what story of life am I telling everyday to the child version of me that held so many innocent dreams, believing that this world is a beautiful place and goodness always wins. If I can talk to that child without hiding anything, then I must be doing something good with my life.

Many people in today's world struggle to make ends meet, suffer from financial constraints and commitments and thus end up working for their commitments, leading a life of monotony. So how do you free yourself from financial bondage? If you relate your financial strength to your happiness, then you need to find your break-even point of happiness. How do you do it? By going back down your memory lane a little. In your career over the last many years, what was the salary that made you break through your financial struggle, gave you enough to be contended and yet did not give you much to be luxurious? I would call it as the break-even salary. Restrict your expenses to that salary. Invest the remaining money that you save. That way, every expense you make will be measured as it is guided by the break-even salary. These days we want everything so quickly. Earn quickly, travel quickly, build a house quickly (no wonder buildings collapse), and so on. So who wants to die quickly? No one. So if you plan on living a long time, then as well invest on your health, spend slowly, and breathe easy.

When you move forward in life by the strength of your knowledge, you will never be limited by your knowledge of your weakness; life will help you find a way.

Birth is a quick format

Achievement, before it is made, was a goal. 

A goal, before it is made, was a priority.

A priority, before it is made, was but an choice. 

A choice, before it was made, was an idea. 

An idea, before it was made, was a thought. 

A thought, before it was made, was a curiosity. 

A curiosity, before it was made, was a kindled mind. 

A kindled mind, before it was made, was a student.

A student, before it was made, was a child.

A child, before it was made, was an embryo.

An embryo, before it was made was an unborn soul.

The unborn soul, before it was made, was a previous birth. 

The above can go on and on. You see, while we are narrowed in our vision and  the understanding of life, and therefore think that life is limited to only the present birth in which our consciousness exists, every achievement of ours, every downfall of ours, spans the intellectual and emotional horizons of various lifetimes which build our karma. 

So the seed of our achievement today was sown perhaps many lifetimes back and it is only the cycle that continues. Each birth is but simply a quick formatting of our conscience and an insertion of a new one so that we may start afresh, to make newer choices and learn newer lessons, while the soul carries the knowledge of the past.

Random Streaks XV

Money is like daylight. It lights up your life, but it lasts only till the sun shines. Knowledge is like the ambient light that is always there, but you don't see it always. You realize its existence only when it is dark and your eyes slowly adjust to the darkness and you are able to find your way through the blackness.

Teaching is a profession that not only En-nobles the teacher 

but also En-lightens the student, 

by En-couraging free thinking, 

En-thralling their intellect, 

En-capsulating knowledge into their grey cells, 

En-abling them to En-vision a better world, 

helping them avoid En-trapment of En-ticement, 

En-ding their ignorance, 

enabling them to En-trench their place in the world,

and thus achieving an En-tirety in life. 

How noble teaching is indeed! 
En is Educate Now!

It is everyone's right to be ambitious in life. But climb up using your own legs and ladder; not by climbing over other's back.

Gaining weightage in the organization or society does not have a benefit if you are standing over quicksand. You just sink faster. Real growth is when you are climbing the mountain with the stability that your weight gives you. Remember, if you want to fly, you have to grow lighter. Your choice of becoming lighter or heavier depends on where you want to be.

There is no pride and glory in becoming the biggest frog in the well. There is always an ocean that one must seek; you will realize that the well is but a drop.

We are the living proof that God exists. If you deny the existence of God, then I want to know from you how the first man on earth was born? Use science, mathematics, logic, whatever. But please do explain. Darwin tried explaining the evolution, but not the origination.

Random Streaks XIV

Fire...the single most important force ruling our life. 

We are

Born by the fire of passion 

Taught by a burning curiosity

Guided by the light of knowledge

Blinded by burning desire

Motivated by the fire in the belly

Confirmed lifeless by the lack of body heat

Consigned to flames as the final rite of our existence.

A fight starts with the intent of one, but fueled with the contribution of many and ends with the happiness of none.

If you want your existence to be strong and long like the banyan tree, then choose the ground well, on which you will stand. Sometimes it is wise to be a flowing river so that you don't accumulate dirt from stagnation. The ground you need to stand firmly is your family. The ground you need to flow swiftly to different levels/ladders is your profession/job. If this is the other way around, they you will mess up your life.

Money is a very important utility for sustaining our life; but not the yardstick for measuring how well it was lived.

When the blood is young and the anger is fresh, everyone wants to speak out their views, change the world and save humanity. When experience and age kick in, they realize it is clever to just shut up, only change themselves, and save their dignity.

Your enemies help you overcome your failures by pointing out your weakness. Your friends help you succeed by highlighting your strength. Be grateful to both.

Edge of deceptive perception

We lead a life on the edge of deceptive perception; following the mob; believing the rules set in the bygone past. Slogging at a 'safe' job all our lives, with a good portion of the pay lost in taxes. Then a smart consultant says - Make an investment and you can get tax relief'. End up buying a house beyond our means, by taking a loan thus immersing ourselves deeper into debt and sh**. Live with the constant fear of losing all our savings, losing a job, ending up being unable to repay that debt which you very religiously grew. And the companies know that the employees are caught in this web, which makes it all the more easier for them to have their way with the employees. Just have to give the scare of competition and job scarcity to get the employees into a frenzied working lifestyle. In addition, with the introduction of monthly installments, which are actually easier to pay but difficult to manage and digest, things just got worse. Everyone wants everything even before they had the money to buy it. With EMIs, just get caught into deeper sh**. End up compromising all the good things in life, to accumulate all the perceived wealth in life, which in reality just sucked up your life energy. In those days, days before EMIs, credit cards, housing loans, etc, the world was a much slower yet sensible place. People knew the value of everything because they had to save money for it, paise by paise. Children knew the difficulties of their parents, and were thankful for what they had. They learnt to get access to more by sharing with others than buying for themselves. Children learnt about saving by observing their parents. Today's children only learn to ask anything that their friends have, not ask what their parents can afford. Thus the generation grows without courage in their heart, and without common sense in their brains. One develops the trait of courage and risk-taking only when one does not have something and have to do anything it takes to get it. We will continue in this lifeless dream with sleepless nights, sadly.

World functions on inequality

We believe in equality - among people, things; proportion in every aspect of life. But when you really give it a thought, the machinery of this world can only function in inequality. Unless there is weight on both sides of the measuring scale, it will never be in balance. What if there is no prey and every animal on this planet is a predator? It will only lead to chaos. Every animal will fight fiercely, day and night, to either establish dominance or not be defeated. That will become the way of life, setting in a chaotic order in the world. Imagine if there were no poor people in this world, and everybody was rich. There would be no growth at all in the society; there would only be stagnation. Who will work for whom? Who would aspire to grow? Who would nurture a genuine ambition? Only the badness in this world can show you what goodness can be. He who is poor will desire to be rich. He who is rich will only become more greedy. That would lead to fall of order in the human society. There would be no followers and thus no leaders. It is in the inequality of things in this world where one finds the spirit and drive to break it.

World is a Super Computer

When you really think about it, this world is really a sentient being which is as powerful and clever as a supercomputer. We have read that the computer broadly has three parts, Input unit, Processing Unit and the Output unit. If you take the world itself to be a computer, then Brahma is the input device, Vishnu is the processing unit, and Shiva is the output unit. Now I am more interested in thinking about the output unit. Output in a computer is the end result of the processing. That means death equals the end result of the processing, which is life. Thus, death is not the destruction of life but the outcome of life. This would thus imply that the real life, that is the beginning of complete consciousness, begins after this life, which is a reflection in the water, is completed.

Random Streaks XIII

After years of experience and research, it has been discovered that, the reason many good and talented people fail in their professional life and never grow is due to a medical condition caused by the presence of a 'spine' that does not allow them to bend down.

Life is so ironic, or should I rather say that God has a great sense of wicked humour. When we are young, we have so many choices that we can make, but lesser maturity to choose aptly. When we grow old, our maturity level and mental capability increases, but there are fewer options to choose from. So find that best time of your life where you have both and make the best use of it.

We are all like fruits. When we are young, we hang on to our beliefs, ego, arrogance, etc just like the fruits hanging firmly from the branch of the tree. As we mature with age and knowledge, we reach a ripened state, and we let go of all that binds us, just like a ripe fruit falling to the ground. We fall to the ground of reality with a better understanding of what life is, and are in a ready state to put ourselves to good purpose and use.

When I was young, arrogant and ambitious, I wanted a piece of this world. When I am older, humbled and realistic, I want to be at peace with this world.

Many times in life, we have to take the wrong route for the right way.

Talent is what you do with the luck, good or bad, given to you in life.

Lesson from the birds

There is a lot we can learn from the birds that we consider inferior to us in intelligence. These lessons will certainly help us lead a fulfilling life. 

1. Begin your day early 

2. Go about your day's work diligently 

3. Fly high but be quick to plant your feet on the ground reality 

4. Do not differentiate the people who feed you 

5. Share what you eat 

6. Feed your children from your own mouth, before you feed yourself 

7. Stay close to the good people who show you kindness 

8. Give a 'shit' about the stone hearted people 

9. End up your work day on time to be with your family 

10. When it is time to migrate, just move 1

11. Stay united with your friends and family

You are the Soul

The ultimate truth to be realized in life is that - you are not the body, but you are the soul. When you identify yourself as the body, you feel so finite and mortal. The moment you identify yourself as the soul instead, you become infinite and immortal, garnering all knowledge you have gained through all your births to realize the greatest truth of this temporary worldly existence called life.

The Unseen Force

A majority of humans on earth believe that they are in control of their life's direction; that their actions alone decide what happens with them in life. They refuse to believe in fate or an external force influencing their life's events. To try and prove that fate (or an unseen supreme power) exists and influences our lives. let us consider the fact that no one consciously ever wishes for bad things to happen to them. Neither are their actions and efforts focused towards negative outcomes. Each and everyone of us pray only for good things for us and our dear ones. Likewise, we only indulge in those actions that lead to our own betterment and good fortune. Yet, bad things do happen to us. We meet failures despite the best and intelligent efforts. Does this not disprove the fact that our actions alone are sufficient decide the direction of our life? And hence, does it alternatively also not prove that something beyond our understanding influence our life's events. You can call that unseen force as fate or God or a supreme power. That is up to you. But you cannot refute the theory though.

Corporate Ladder in the Black Hole

What happens to people when they grow up the organizational ladder or in the society? What should they do to sustain and keep going up? The modern day mantra across the world for addressing the above questions lies not in psychology or management, but in physics! You would have heard of an astronomical entity called Black Hole (well, you would have if you have seen the movie Interstellar). Black holes were once stellar bodies that started collapsing into itself thus gathering extreme mass and gravitation, till they reach a point where they pull everything into themselves and does not let anything, including light, escape from it. Hence the name. Likewise, as a person grows up the corporate ladder or even in life, if the craze for power gets to them and they want to stay on top and keep growing, then they should start becoming self-centered, ensuring their own gains in everything by hook or crook, and never let anyone else surpass them. They will have to become the center point in everything, no matter if they deserve to be there or not. Such people will surely succeed. Of course other people don't call such people as Black Holes, but something more or less similar in rhyming though. Bah, who cares?!

Life and Death

The answers to the most complex things of this world that is beyond our understanding lie in the most simplest of things that are in front of our eyes, yet which we do not see. Life and Death, for example. Man has advanced to the point where he is able to look back into the history of the universe, calculate the distance of earth from the sun, and even send satellites to other heavenly bodies. But we are not able to understand life and death. Now, man understands how the process of life and death happens. But he does not understand the purpose of it. Why are we born? What social purpose does our birth serve our Maker? Why do we die and where do we go after that? Simply, what purpose does this planet serve God or the unseen, omnipresent force that created all of this? Why do we have a confusion about our identity? Are we the body or are we the soul? And how does this machine called the body simply run on portable energy? 

We speak of human evolution and that of other life forms. But how did humans and plant life evolve together such that humans breathe out carbon dioxide that the plants need, and plants breathe out oxygen that we need? So man cannot destroy the plants without destroying himself? Is this a defense mechanism or a bonding created by our Maker? And when and where did this cellular communication with plants happen that we evolved in mutual symbiosis of one another? So many questions for which it will take eons of years to answer. But one thing is clear - man was never meant to establish dominion on this planet. The plant and animal life around us is our time bomb or lifesaver and God gave us the free will to destroy ourselves.

Random Streaks XII

Life is a long road towards a destination. This is a one-way road governed by Time. You can only move forward, but never return to what you have passed. The one destination that everyone walks towards takes on different forms. But for most of them, this one destination is God. This road of life has many pathways along its sides. These pathways are the religions that only help man walk along a straight path towards the one ultimate goal. Many pathways can exist in parallel, without inter-crossing each other. This is secularism. But sadly, the secularism that is being preached and taught right now is equivalent to that of everyone attempting to walk in the middle of the road, even if it means one sitting on top of the other. This would only result in chaos and mayhem.

Some bridges have to be kept. But some will have to be burnt so that you are left with no option to retrace your steps but move forward with your decisions. Knowing which bridges to keep and which ones to burn is the game changer in everyone's life.

The wind can either fan a flame or blow it out instead. Intensity of the wind is what makes the difference. When it comes to motivating another person, we have to choose cautiously.

The language of English and that of Mathematics are so far apart. Now if I told an hardcore mathematician that I did a post-graduation by post (i.e. correspondence), then he/she would tell me, in post-graduation by post, we would cancel the word 'post' and thus I would only end up with a graduation!

Coming up in life through support and recommendations of others is like sharpening a pencil using a sharpener. Coming up in life through your own hard work is like sharpening a pencil using a blade. You know each and every effort that you put into it and how it shaped up eventually.

Constrictive criticism curtails talent; constructive criticism kindles it.

Life is really a bed of roses. Just that, based on your deeds, God shows you the thorny side of it or the rosy side of it when you fall.

Care for a haircut?

I had a simple haircut over the weekend at a beauty salon (the cultured and the cosmopolitans call them the hairstylists. But the usual tendency is to address these people as barbers, sadly). I was charged Rs.150 for a job that took the man 15 minutes. He did not seem like a person holding a post-graduate degree in computers or management. He had enough arithmetic knowledge to calculate the balance he had to give me. But he had 8-10 people waiting in line for haircut. Now, this was just an haircut, mind you. I saw the same guy charge a gentleman Rs.650 for a haircut and dyeing just a few minutes earlier when I was waiting for my turn. During this time I reflected upon a lot of things, the foremost thought being, how does a salaried professional, especially from the IT industry, fare better than these folks? Can I say I have a better dignity of labor? I don't think so. Dignity of labor is what we perceive we have, so that we can justify our reality in support of the dreams that fuel our desires. It fuels our ego so that we can walk with our head held high in a hypocritical society. But the truth is far from that, which is not my point of discussion or contention now. But I realized that the one probable reason why we lead the lives of a salaried professional, fearing the markets, expecting the unexpected recessions, and running out-of-breath in the rat race is this perceived dignity of labor within the boundaries of this hypocritical society. Thus our perception of ourselves leads us to believe that the profession of a barber is much below in standard and dignity, without the realization that he is his own boss, probably earns more than me, and works by his own terms and conditions without the fear of ever becoming redundant because the hair keeps growing! So the next time you want to angrily ask someone if he was plucking hair (I don't want to translate this into Tamil, out of decency), think twice, because he probably can make more money than you just doing that.

Existence of God

What proves the existence of God, the unseen omnipresent force? 

I would say, the presence would be proved by the non-availability of answer to a very simple question. A child is born out of the union of a man and a woman. The how was the first child born? Who designed evolution? It is a paradoxical situation when you think about it. You need to have a woman first to create the first man on earth through the process of reproduction. But that woman will still need a man to complete the reproduction process. It is the typical what came first - the egg or the hen question. But only that this contains a deeper mystery as it concerns us and our understanding of our Creator. 

Evolution of life only explains how single-celled organisms became multi-celled and then dinosaurs, reptiles, mammals, primates and then humans. This only explains the biological process, but not how these subtle design changes were introduced, and how the environmental factors were made conducive to facilitate such an evolution. All of these needed external triggers in controlled measures that needs the presence of an entity that handles it. That would be God.

Random Streaks XI

A carefree mind runs faster. But a disciplined mind runs further.

One resolution to keep for life - always do the right thing at the right time. The right thing is what you decide to do based on your gut feeling. The right time is the moment when your impulse is guided by this gut feeling. One belief to keep for life - Whatever happened was meant to happen, and you have no influence over it. Go with the flow.

You need only one rule in life to survive it - come what may, strive to keep your head above the water. If that is not possible, then at the least, keep the nose above the water. Nothing else will eventually matter.

Your destiny gives birth to you, your character is born with you, and your behavior is born from you.

Life can be complex depending on the way you see and understand it. A laugh is an extension (or a heartier version) of a smile. Yet, you are fine with people smiling at you, but not laughing at you. Circle and zero are of the same shape. Yet, life coming a full circle is an universal philosophy, while someone saying that his/her life has become a complete zero would be seen as a sign of failure and depression. It is up to us to define the meaning of our lives, but it does not matter what others think of it, as long as we are virtuous and honest.

Political scenario of the world today: 
Party members and followers cry out - 'Hail the leader' 
Opposition parties cry out - 'Fail the leader' 
People cry out - 'Jail the leader' 
Opposition lawyer cries out - 'Nail the leader' 
Defense lawyer cries out - 'Bail for the leader' 
The leader announces to the media - 'I will never quail because of all this' 
And finally the innocent voting public must wail because of the leader.

A good manager is ethically correct. A smart manager is politically correct. You cannot be one without being the other if you want to survive the current corporate scenario. Be a good manager to your clients. Be a smart manager when dealing with your company.

True secularism exists where the religions exist like the rails on a railway track. They always run in parallel, at par with each other, but never crossing into one another. Only then will the realization be made that both the rails are equally important to carry the train to its destination. Likewise, only then can all religions lead man to the only God that created everyone on this planet.

Our parents are our rockets!

A rocket usually contains a conical chamber at its top that will carry the payload that needs to be put on orbit. The rest of the rocket contains the engine that helps the rocket launch from the earth, leave the atmosphere, go into space and reach the orbit. After that point, these components of the rocket are mostly disengaged from the rocket to reduce its overall weight. Our parents are like these engine components who do everything they can to elevate our position in the society as a citizen and a human being. Without these engines, we can never take off in life at all. But most often we forget that when we attain accomplishments, and foolishly think that those were all possible by our own intelligence and efforts, failing to realize that we ourselves will not have come into existence without our parents. A satellite can feel proud looking down on earth from its orbit in space. But it must never forget that it was launched from the ground below.